ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Biofuels

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions he has had with bioliquids producers on including bioliquids in the strike price mechanism under his Department's electricity market reform programme; and whether his Department has undertaken any work assessing the merits of including bioliquids in that mechanism.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 21 November 2013
	Details of meetings between ministers and external organisations are published quarterly on the departmental website:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change/series/ministers-meeting-with-external-organisations
	The Department assessed the merits of offering a strike price for bioliquids when preparing the policy proposals set out within the draft Delivery Plan consultation published on 17 July. Our assessment of those merits was set out within that consultation.
	The Government response to that consultation will be published shortly.

Climate Change Convention

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the composition is of the UK delegation to the 19th Conference of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which Ministers are expected to attend; and if he will post on his Department's website all documents submitted by the UK to the conference.

Gregory Barker: The UK delegation to the 19th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP) includes officials from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and other Government Departments. The full list of participants in the conference will be published on the UNFCCC website when the COP has concluded, and this will include details of the UK delegation.
	The UK will be represented at ministerial level by the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), and myself. The UK Devolved Administrations will have representation from the Minister for Natural Resources and Food in the Welsh Government, Alun Davies and the Minister for the Environment in the Scottish Government, Paul Wheelhouse.
	As the EU and its member states negotiate as a bloc in the UNFCCC, the UK does not submit documents separately to the conference. All publicly available documents submitted by the EU and its member states can be found on the UNFCCC website.

Energy

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department takes to monitor the level of (a) individual and (b) collective switching of energy companies by customers in each (i) geographic area and (ii) socio-economic group.

Michael Fallon: On a quarterly basis, DECC receive data from Ofgem of the number of switches at an aggregate level for both electricity and gas. These data are published by DECC in Table 2.7.1 of Quarterly Energy Prices:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/quarterly-domestic-energy-switching-statistics
	We do not monitor the level of individual switching by geographic area or socio-economic group.
	We do not monitor the number of customers switching as a result of collective switching schemes on a regular basis. However, we have published evaluation of schemes supported by the Cheaper Energy Together fund, which breaks down the number of switches by scheme and estimates the number of switches according to different indicators of vulnerability. This information can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/helping-customers-switch-collective-switching-and-beyond

Energy Companies Obligation

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations his Department has received on extending the deadline for the energy company obligation.

Gregory Barker: The Department has received a wide variety of views, including from energy suppliers and the insulation industry, on the options for the future of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO); including an extension of the current scheme.
	We will consult, on the range of options for the design of the next stage of ECO after March 2015, in due course.

Energy: Dorset

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to make it easier for customers to switch their energy suppliers in Dorset; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: The Government is providing legislative backing to Ofgem's retail market review measures which will simplify and standardise tariff structures and require suppliers to provide consumers with clearer and better quality information so that it will be easier for all consumers to compare tariffs. We are also bringing forward legislation which will require suppliers to included QR codes which link to a customers' data to make the process even easier.
	The Government is providing extra help and advice to vulnerable consumers through the Big Energy Saving Network to help them engage with the energy market and to give them the confidence to take decisions that will reduce their bills.
	The Government has also been instrumental in providing support to collective switching schemes. Earlier this year the Government kick-started a number of innovative projects through the £5 million Cheaper Energy Together competition. Money was awarded to 31 successful projects that all focused on engaging vulnerable consumers.
	The Government is also discussing with the industry how we can cut the time it takes for a switching to be completed and has expressed an ambition of 24 hour switching.

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 6 November 2013, Official Report, column 286, what the average annual increase was in pounds for (a) gas and (b) electricity in each year since 1996.

Michael Fallon: The average annual increase for gas and electricity bills since 1996 is shown as follows.
	
		
			 £ 
			    Change from previous year 
			  GB average annual gas bill UK average annual electricity bill Gas Electricity 
			 1996 330 297 — — 
			 1997 328 285 -2 -12 
			 1998 315 268 -13 -17 
			 1999 305 264 -10 -4 
			 2000 295 257 -10 -7 
			 2001 293 250 -2 -7 
			 2002 310 249 17 -1 
			 2003 320 250 10 1 
			 2004 333 257 13 7 
			 2005 386 285 53 28 
			 2006 474 338 88 53 
			 2007 536 378 62 40 
			 2007 516 366 — — 
			 2008 604 425 88 59 
			 2009 680 430 76 5 
			 2010 658 418 -22 -12 
			 2011 719 453 61 35 
			 2012 800 479 81 26 
		
	
	This data is taken from Tables 2.2.1 and 2.3.1 of DECC's publication Quarterly Energy Prices (QEP), assuming an annual consumption of 3,300 kWh for electricity and 18,000 kWh for gas. These bills represent a weighted average of payment methods. Prior to 2007 a weighted average bill is not available therefore the gas and electricity bills by standard credit payment method have been used for 1996 to 2007. Annual bill estimates for 2013 will be published in December's edition of QEP on 19 December 2013.

Energy: Prices

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what has been the average price of (a) gas and (b) electricity bills in each month since 2010.

Michael Fallon: Monthly price indices for both electricity and gas are published by the Office for National Statistics. The latest data can be found under 'Consumer Price Inflation, October 2013,' available from the following web link:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/cpi/consumer-price-indices/october-2013/index.html
	Data on average gas and electricity bills are published by DECC on an annual basis. The average annual domestic gas and electricity bills and associated prices in each of the last three years are shown as follows.
	
		
			  Gas Electricity 
			  Average annual bill (£) Price (p/kWh) Average annual bill (£) Price (p/kWh) 
			 2010 658 3.7 418 12.7 
			 2011 719 4.0 453 13.7 
			 2012 800 4.4 479 14.5 
		
	
	Data in this table are taken from Tables 2.2.1 and 2.3.1 of DECC's publication Quarterly Energy Prices (QEP), assuming an annual consumption of 3,300 kWh for electricity and 18,000 kWh for gas. The annual price data shown are derived from these bill estimates. Provisional annual bill estimates for 2013 will be published in December's edition of QEP on 19 December 2013.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many visits the Permanent Secretary and the four next most senior civil servants in his Department made to the European Commission in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The former Permanent Secretary visited Brussels on one occasion. The new Permanent Secretary is planning to visit Brussels soon.
	There were three visits by Directors-General in 2012 and two in 2013. The Chief Scientific Advisor has not visited in 2013. Specific diary information is not available for previous years although he has made a number of visits to the European Commission.
	There are frequent visits to the European Commission by Directors, Deputy Directors and other DECC officials.

Fuel Cells: Hydrogen

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to support the hydrogen fuel market;
	(2)  what steps the Government has taken to make hydrogen fuel a viable part of the transport fuel mix in the UK.

Gregory Barker: DECC, together with the Department for Transport and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, is an active participant in the joint industry-Government UKH2Mobility project, which was launched in January 2012. Following the completion of the evaluation phase and publication of report in February 2013, the UKH2Mobility project has been working to develop a potential business plan for the roll-out of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and the associated refuelling infrastructure in the UK from 2015.
	Working with BIS, DECC and the Office for Low Emissions Vehicles (OLEV) the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) has invested in excess of £41 million into fuel cell and hydrogen technologies since 2009. In this financial year 2013-14 the TSB has plans to invest a further £4.5 million into ongoing activity supporting fuel cell manufacturing and the supply chain and £5 million into technologies specifically enabling the market for hydrogen. Fuel cells and hydrogen technologies are a part of the TSB's energy strategy and further investments into this area are anticipated during the current spending review period to continue to support UK companies developing products for this growing global market.
	In addition hydrogen fuel cell electric cars are eligible under the existing Plug-in Car Grant Scheme, administered by OLEV, which offers motorists a grant of 25% towards the cost of the vehicle, up to a maximum of £5,000.

Members: Correspondence

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he intends to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Sunderland Central dated 29 October 2013, relating to the 2030 decarbonisation target.

Gregory Barker: I have received the letter from the hon. Member dated 29 October 2013, relating to the 2030 decarbonisation target. I shall respond shortly.

Nuclear Power

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the number of people employed by the civil nuclear industry in each constituent part of the UK.

Michael Fallon: The Department does not collate figures for the number of people employed by the civil nuclear industry in each constituent part of the UK. The Nuclear Industry Association's (NIA), however, does produce an annual jobs map based on a survey of NIA members, which does provide regional totals. These amount to 62,872 jobs throughout the nuclear industry in the UK in 2013 and also details the number of employees by parliamentary constituency—see following links:
	http://www.niauk.org/nia-industry-maps
	http://issuu.com/nuclear_industry_association/docs/jobsmap_uk13
	It should be noted, however, that the NIA Capability Report published on 7( )December 2012 made reference to “40,000 working in the UK civil nuclear industry: 25,000 employed directly plus a further 15,000 in the supply chain with many additional indirect jobs supported by nuclear industry activity”. The reason for the difference in totals is that the jobs map includes all employees who have some role in nuclear.

Renewable Energy: Heating

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to recommendation (c) on page 11 of the NAO Report, Infrastructure Investment, published in November 2013, whether his Department has considered the full price impact and affordability implications of widespread deployment of heat pumps.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 21 November 2013
	The Government is promoting the adoption of domestic heat pumps via the Renewable Heat Incentive and the Renewable Heat Premium Payments schemes. The costs of these schemes are met from general public expenditure not from a consumer levy. The impact of these policies for the increased deployment of heat pumps is factored into the Government's overall assessment of the investment required in the electricity sector and the impacts this will have on future electricity prices and bills.

Warm Home Discount Scheme and Energy Companies Obligation

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the costs of implementing the Energy Company Obligation and the Warm Homes Discount in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) England and (d) Wales.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 21 November 2013
	The Department published, on 21 October 2013, a document on ECO costs in Great Britain, based on information as to the actual delivered cost of measures provided by the ECO companies themselves. It is not possible to breakdown these figures by England, Scotland and Wales. This publication concluded that projected costs of the scheme are in line with the central scenario in the DECC impact assessment of around £1.3 billion pa on average. This is also supported by evidence from the brokerage mechanism, under which around £300 million of future contracts for ECO compliance have been traded, at prices broadly in line with the impact assessment estimate.
	The document can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/254145/energy_company_obligation_delivery_costs_30_october_2013.pdf
	The annual spending targets for the Warm Home Discount are set out in the Warm Home Discount Regulations 2011. Actual spending by suppliers across Great Britain was £238 million in 2011-12 and £283 million in 2012-13. Suppliers do not report on regional spending or on their administrative costs of delivering the scheme.

SCOTLAND

Atos Origin

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department has spent on contracts with Atos in each year since 2008.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any contracts with Atos since 2008.

Energy

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress he has made on improving the energy efficiency of his Department.

David Mundell: A wide range of measures have been taken in order to improve energy efficiency in the Scotland Office.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Northern Ireland Government

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when she expects the outcome of the Haass talks on flags, parading and dealing with the past to be presented to Parliament.

Andrew Robathan: Dr Haass has indicated that he believes the work of the All-Party Group he chairs can be finalised by Christmas. What is produced and when is a matter for the group. We will consider in the light of the outcome how best to allow the House to express its views.

PRIME MINISTER

Iraq Committee of Inquiry

David Amess: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what recent discussions he has had with the US President about the publication by the Chilcot Inquiry of conversations between (a) Tony Blair and George W. Bush and (b) the right hon. Member for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath and George W. Bush in the period (i) leading up to the conflict in Iraq and (ii) after the invasion of Iraq; what response was received from the President; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he expects the report of the Chilcot Inquiry into the war in Iraq to be published; what discussions Sir John Chilcot has had with those expected to be criticised in his report; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will discuss with the administrators of the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war a final date for publication; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  if he will seek the agreement of the US President to the publication of classified documents by the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  how many documents provided by the Government to the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war have been declassified; how many he expects will be declassified within the next six months; and if he will make a statement;
	(6)  whether it remains his intention to publish the report of the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war in full; and if he will make a statement;
	(7)  what discussions he has had since March 2013 with the (a) Chairman and (b) Secretary of the Chilcot Inquiry on the publication of its report; and if he will make a statement;
	(8)  what recent representations (a) he, (b) other Ministers and (c) officials of (i) No. 10 Downing Street and (ii) the Cabinet Office have made to (A) the Chairman and (B) secretariat of the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq War about possible delays in publication of its report due to responses from officials of the US government; what response was received to these representations; and if he will make a statement;
	(9)  when each member of the Chilcot inquiry into the Iraq War was appointed and by whom; what process was followed in his or her appointment; where the post was advertised; how many persons applied for the post; how many were short-listed for interview; how each was appraised; what criteria were adopted for appointment; and if he will make a statement.

David Cameron: The former Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath (Mr Brown), appointed the members of the Iraq Inquiry Committee. Opposition leaders were consulted.
	The Inquiry is independent of Government. The Inquiry Committee has had full access to all documents relevant to its work, including records of Cabinet level discussions and notes and records of discussions between Mr Blair, the right hon. Member for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath (Mr Brown), and President Bush. Disclosure of UK documents is a matter for HM Government and the Inquiry. Discussions on this are continuing.
	Sir John Chilcot wrote to me on 4 November updating me on the Inquiry's progress. Copies of this letter and my reply of 5 November are available on the Inquiry's website.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Members: ICT

Robert Flello: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, what discussions the Commission has had with the Department for Communities and Local Government on the implications of the recommendations in End User Devices Security Guidance published by CESG for the pilot and proposed roll-out of more flexible working by hon. Members involving the use of a wider range of IT equipment.

John Thurso: It is a long-standing practice that we do not reveal publicly the details of Parliament's security measures as this would be likely to increase the risks. However, both Houses and the Parliamentary ICT Service take seriously the security of parliamentary information and communications technology, and a higher priority is being given to strengthening that security in the light of evolving threats. The technology strategy is to provide more flexible and effective services to help Members in their work, while ensuring that parliamentary information and systems are suitably and proportionately protected. To that end, expert advice is regularly sought from a variety of sources.
	The director of parliamentary ICT would be happy to discuss any specific concerns with the hon. Member.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Atos Origin

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on contracts with Atos in each year since 2008.

David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) did not have any contracts or spend with any Atos companies from 2010 to date. Unfortunately, there are no records held centrally to indicate whether the FCO had any contract or spend with Atos prior to 2010 and to obtain data prior to 2010 could only be done at a disproportionate cost.

Bahrain

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that British citizens who face criminal prosecution in Bahrain (a) have their human rights fully respected, (b) receive a fair trial and (c) are not subjected to arbitrary travel bans.

Hugh Robertson: The Foreign Office provides consular assistance to British nationals overseas in a range of situations, including in Bahrain. However, the UK cannot interfere in the judicial process of another country, and must respect their systems just as we expect them to respect the UK's laws and legal process. Consular officials cannot provide legal advice, and therefore we offer British nationals a list of local lawyers who are best placed to do so should this be required. Under Bahrain law, the authorities may place a travel ban on an individual while their case is in court, although normal procedure is not to keep hold of the passport.

Bahrain

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that the Government of Bahrain co-operates with the civil legal processes of the UK.

Hugh Robertson: There are no specific treaties between the UK and Bahrain on civil legal processes.

Egypt and Middle East

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect of the closure of tunnels between Egypt and Gaza on (a) electricity, (b) water and sanitation, (c) fuel and (d) food supplies in Gaza; and what representations he is making to his Egyptian and Israeli counterparts on the matter.

Hugh Robertson: I am concerned by the effect of the tunnel closures on the already difficult humanitarian and economic situation in Gaza. According to the UN and other independent sources, the ending of the smuggling of subsidized Egyptian fuel through the tunnels has led to a major electricity and fuel crisis. The electricity shortage has undermined an already precarious infrastructure, severely disrupting the provision of basic services, including health, water and sanitation. The tunnel closures have also impacted significantly on availability of construction materials and food, leading to higher prices and growing unemployment.
	I made representations on the situation in Gaza to the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister and discussed it with the Palestinian President and Foreign Minister during my recent visit to the region. The British embassy in Cairo has also made representations on Gaza to the Egyptian authorities.

Gibraltar: Spain

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his Spanish counterpart on delays caused by Spanish border police to travellers entering and leaving Gibraltar; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: The UK's serious concerns about the delays at the Gibraltar-Spain border have been made very clear to the Spanish Government, most recently during the summoning of the Spanish ambassador to the UK on 19 November. The Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), and I have all raised this in the strongest terms with our Spanish counterparts. We continue to issue formal protests to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs about all border delays. We welcome the European Commission's recent recommendations for Spain to improve the functioning of the border and expect the Spanish Government to implement their recommendations without delay. We remain confident that the additional Spanish checks are unlawful under EU law, as they are both politically motivated and disproportionate.

Hong Kong

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on allowing Hong Kong to rejoin the Commonwealth should it indicate a wish to do so.

Hugo Swire: The UK welcomes applications to join the Commonwealth where countries can demonstrate the necessary requirements and dedication to the Commonwealth's core values, particularly in relation to human rights, good governance and rule of law. But it is not within the UEC's gift. Decisions on membership are made by consensus of Heads of all Commonwealth members, based on applicant countries meeting the criteria. Commonwealth member states agreed in 2007 that only sovereign states should be considered for membership of the Commonwealth. Hong Kong, as a Special Administrative Region of China, is not a sovereign state and is therefore ineligible.

Indonesia

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what additional safeguards his Department is considering for UK nationals going to Indonesia in the near future following the recent cases of the H5N1 bird flu virus.

Hugo Swire: We are aware of the most recent case of a person dying in Indonesia earlier this month related to the H5N1 bird flu virus. We continue to highlight the risks of individuals contracting the H5N1 bird flu virus whilst in Indonesia and recommend appropriate steps within our Travel Advice for Indonesia to mitigate the risk of a British national being affected.

Kieron Bryan

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when British consular officials in Russia have visited Kieron Bryan since 17 October 2013; how long each such visit lasted; and when the next such visit is planned.

David Lidington: Consular officials visited Kieron Bryan on 29 October and 6 and 14 November. During each visit, which varied in length, they were able to discuss welfare issues with Mr Bryan and follow up on these with the relevant Russian authorities. Consular officials also attended the court hearing on 20 November at which Kieron Bryan was granted bail. Consular officials will remain in close contact with Mr Bryan, and Greenpeace, and consider future support as the terms of the bail conditions are clarified.

Middle East

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made to the Israeli authorities in respect of the proposed Mount Scopus Slopes National Park.

Hugh Robertson: Our ambassador in Tel Aviv has raised concerns about the proposed Mount Scopus Slopes National Park repeatedly with the Israeli authorities, most recently on 13 November.

Russia

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he and ministers in his Department will next meet their Russian counterparts; and if he will ensure that the detention of British journalists in Russia will be raised at such meetings.

David Lidington: I met Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Titov on 21 November to discuss a broad range of issues. One of the issues discussed was the detention of those on board the Greenpeace vessel, the Arctic Sunrise. This included British journalist Kieron Bryan, the only British journalist in detention in Russia, who was granted bail on 20 November.

Training

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many workshops, seminars, or training programmes have been organised by his Department in non-Nato member states since 2006.

Hugh Robertson: Strengthening the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) as an institution is a priority under our ‘Diplomatic Excellence’ programme. Learning and development activity is targeted to support the FCO's goal to be the best diplomatic service in the world. On the overall scope and cost of the FCO's global approach to learning and development I refer to the answer given by then Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the FCO, my right hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Alistair Burt), on 28 February 2013, Official Report , column 671W.
	The FCO has nearly 270 diplomatic offices around the world of which the majority are in non NATO countries. As well as the centrally run activities, posts around the world and directorates in London regularly organise informal learning, workshops, seminars and training programmes in support of FCO priorities. Records of this devolved activity are not held centrally and to obtain the data can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Travel

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the cost of travel within the UK was for his Department in each year since 2010; and how much of this was spent on (a) hire cars, (b) helicopter hire, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence.

Hugh Robertson: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) are committed to ensuring that travel is as cost effective as possible. Where possible and appropriate, we encourage secure video-conferencing around the FCO network in a further effort to reduce the number of flights needed. However, face to face meetings are a vital part of diplomatic work and this necessarily involves travel.
	The specific information you requested is not held centrally, so collating it will involve at disproportionate cost. However, I am listing below the costs for combined air. rail and hotel bookings made through the FCO travel management company, Hogg Robinson Group plc.
	
		
			  £ 
			 2011-12 1,013,389 
			 2012-13 1,355,635 
		
	
	Since 2011, the FCO has used Hogg Robinson Group as our supplier for domestic travel. Prior to this, officers purchased tickets from their own funds or using their corporate credit cards and were reimbursed for actual costs. The increase in the figures is because more travel is booked through centrally through Hogg Robinson and less individually through local travel agents in order to maximise value for money to the taxpayer.
	Since January 2010 the FCO also moved to claims for ‘actual’ expenditure incurred as part of staff duties, replacing a fixed-based subsistence system. Actual expenses are either claimed back or processed on Government Procurement Cards. Much of this data is already published and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-procurement-card-data

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

House of Commons: ICT

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with the House of Commons Commission on the effect of the End User Devices Security Guidance: Enterprise Considerations released by CESG on the provision of mobile electronic devices to hon. Members.

Brandon Lewis: None, as my Department has no responsibility for the use of mobile electronic devices by hon. Members.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Democratic Republic of Congo

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the recent report of the Africa Progress Panel, Equity in Extractives, on mining contracts in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), if she will hold discussions with the government of DCR to ensure that anti-corruption measures are in place for any future mining contracts.

Alan Duncan: The UK is supporting efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) mining sector to both increase transparency and improve governance through the ProMines programme. We also support the Carter Centre in its efforts to empower local civil society to better hold to account both the government of DRC and mining companies. The UK also supports the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to improve the management of the DRC's natural resources to promote economic development and tackle poverty.

CABINET OFFICE

Public Sector: ICT

Robert Flello: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the estimated additional cost to the public purse is of implementation of the recommendations in End User Devices Security Guidance: Enterprise Considerations, published by CESG, and consequent issuing of additional IT equipment and mobile telephones.

Nick Hurd: No estimate of additional costs has been made as the guidance is expected to be considered as part of public sector organisations' procurement of IT, alongside value for money considerations. The guidance is intended to assist the public sector in taking advantage of modern technology in a risk managed way.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 18 June 2013, Official Report, column 583W, on Afghanistan, whether the UK's train, advise and assist role in Afghanistan includes advice on the recording of the numbers, status and cause of death of civilian casualties.

Mark Francois: The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Coalition, of which the UK is a major contributor, continues to work with the Afghan National Security Forces to help them to build their own capacity to avoid or mitigate civilian casualties, using the ISAF Civilian Casualties Mitigation Team as a model.

Armed Forces: Dogs

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason his Department has recently issued a recall for improvised explosive device detection dogs to be returned to the Defence Animal Centre for rehoming; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: It is Directorate of Army Veterinary Remount Services policy that all classifications of military working dogs, including counter-improvised explosive device (C-IED) dogs, that fall below the minimum operational standards, are returned to the Canine Training Squadron at the Defence Animal Centre where they are given a detailed health and employment evaluation by qualified and experienced dog trainers and veterinary officers.
	For the majority, the evaluation is followed by a period of focused restorative training prior to being issued back to the Front Line Command or a new Defence user. For a small number this will not be an option and, in the case of dogs purchased to meet the C-IED Urgent Operational Requirement, an independent evaluation team will confirm that they are no longer able to remain within the service and re-homing is to be explored.

Armed Forces: Sexual Offences

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many serving members of the armed forces are currently on the sex offenders register.

Anna Soubry: There are currently 29 serving members of the armed forces on the sex offenders register. Of these, 28 are category 1, level 1 offenders (the least serious category and minimum management level) and one is a category 1, level 2 offender where there is active multi-agency management of the individual.

Defence: Procurement

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to ensure that any entity acquiring defence procurement contracts pay corporation tax in the UK.

Philip Dunne: We would expect any entity acquiring or being awarded defence procurement contracts to pay corporation tax, where applicable, in line with current regulations.

Energy

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress he has made on improving the energy efficiency of his Department.

Anna Soubry: Details of energy usage across the Department can be found in the Ministry of Defence Annual Report and Accounts 2012-13 (HC38), Sustainability Report which can be found at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mod-annual-report-and-accounts-201213

Marines: Poole

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the economic benefits of Royal Marines Poole in Hamworthy for the local community.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has not undertaken an assessment of the economic benefit to the local community of the Royal Marines Poole.
	The MOD does not routinely hold or assess such information unless a decision is being considered to relocate, close or expand the base. However, it is fair to say the local community will benefit economically from having a Defence establishment within it.

Military Bases: North Yorkshire

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last visited Alanbrooke Barracks, Topcliffe.

Philip Hammond: So far, during my tenure as Secretary of State for Defence, I have not visited Alanbrooke Barracks.

Military Decorations: World War II

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 4 July 2013, Official Report, column 779W, on military decorations: World War II, how many applications have been received to date from next of kin; what progress his Department has made in processing applications from next of kin to date; what the average processing time is for applications; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: Some 11,000 applications for the Arctic Star Medal have been received from next of kin. It is anticipated that these should all be acknowledged by the end of 2013.
	Having completed the despatch of awards to living veterans, the focus has now moved to the assessment of widows' applications. It is anticipated that this will be completed by early 2014.
	As the assessment of widows' applications is currently the priority, it is too early to quantify an average processing time for those received from next of kin.

RAF Menwith Hill

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) UK contractors, (b) UK civilians, (c) MOD personnel, (d) Ministry of Defence Police, (e) RAF personnel and (f) GCHQ personnel work at NSA Menwith Hill.

Mark Francois: As of 31 October 2013 the following UK personnel were employed at RAF Menwith Hill:
	
		
			  Number 
			 UK Contractors 179 
			 Ministry of Defence/UK Civilians 360 
			 Royal Air Force 2 
		
	
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not release the numbers of police officers at particular locations for security reasons.
	The MOD does not comment on whether there are personnel working in intelligence at specific locations.

Rescue Services: International Cooperation

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions since 21 March 2012 a foreign-requested aircraft has provided search and rescue assistance over UK territorial waters; what role each aircraft played; and what the location of each incident was.

Mark Francois: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given on 27 March 2012, Official Report, column 1054W and 23 November 2010, Official Report, columns 225-26W, by my predecessor the hon. Member for North Devon (Sir Nick Harvey).
	Between 21 March 2012 and 4 November 2013 there have been four occasions where a foreign aircraft was requested by the Aeronautical Rescue Co-ordination Centre to provide search and rescue assistance over UK territorial waters, one of which was a joint response with UK assets. Details are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Date Aircraft Aircraft Role Location 
			 9 May 2012 Irish Coastguard Helicopter Search for person in water Belfast Harbour 
			 26 July 2012 Irish Coastguard Helicopter Jet skier in difficulty (Assistance requested but recalled en-route) Ballykelly Northern Ireland 
			 21 February 2013 Belgian Navy Helicopter Sinking yacht (Assistance requested but recalled en-route) North of Margate 
			 4 September 2013 French Coastguard Helicopter Search for downed aircraft West of Jersey 
		
	
	In the same period UK military assets responded to some 2,900 incidents. Further details can be found on the Defence Statistics website at the following link:
	http://www.dasa.mod.uk/index.php/publications/activities

Reserve Forces: Young People

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2013, Official Report, column 140W, on reserve forces: young people, if he will consider a pilot for those in the youth justice system.

Anna Soubry: Although we do not recruit individuals directly from the custodial system, individuals who have been through the justice system may be eligible to apply to become members of the armed forces, whether regular or reserve. The recruitment of individuals with criminal records is subject to the provisions of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.

Territorial Army

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average age is of all ranks in the (a) Territorial Army and (b) Territorial Army infantry.

Anna Soubry: holding answer 18 November 2013
	It is worth noting that we would expect the average age of Army Reservists to be lower once the increases have taken place with increased fitness requirements and increased deployability requirements.
	The average age for all ranks in the Territorial Army (TA) and the Territorial Army Infantry on strength on 1 October 2013 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Average age 
			 All TA Group A 36 
			 Group A Infantry 35 
			 Notes/caveats: 1. The figures are for TA Group A, both untrained and trained. This excludes Officer cadets in University Office Training Core Units, Non Regular Permanent Staff and Expeditionary Forces Institute. 2. The Infantry figure excludes Staff Officers (Colonel and above). 3. Average age is the weighted mean age rounded down to the nearest integer. Source: Defence Statistics (Army)

Territorial Army

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the average age is for (a) privates, (b) junior NCOs, (c) senior NCOs, (d) junior officers, (e) senior officers (i) in the Territorial Army and (ii) recruited into the Territorial Army since the commencement of Operation Fortify;
	(2)  what the average age is of all ranks recruited since the commencement of Operation Fortify in the (a) Territorial Army and (b) Territorial Army infantry.

Anna Soubry: holding answer 18 November 2013
	The average age of Army Reservists is expected to fall with higher fitness requirements and deployability requirements of the Army Reserve by 2018.
	The average age by rank in the Territorial Army (TA) is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Private Junior NCO Senior NCO Junior Officer Senior Officer 
			 On TA Group A strength 1 October 2013 29 38 46 42 51 
			 Notes/caveats: 1. The figures are for TA Group A, both untrained and trained. This excludes officer cadets in University Office Training Core Units, Non Regular Permanent Staff, Sponsored Reserves and Expeditionary Forces Institute. 2. Junior NCOs includes Lance Corporals and Corporals. Senior NCOs includes Sergeants, Staff Sergeants and Warrant Officers, Junior Officers includes Officer Cadets, Subalterns, Captains and Majors. Senior Officers includes Officers with paid rank Lieutenant Colonel and above. 3. Average age is the weighted mean age rounded down to the nearest integer. 4. The recruiting element of Operation Fortify only began in mid-September. The length of time from candidate application to commencement of phase one training is approximately three months. It is therefore too early to provide the information requested for the specified period. Source: Defence Statistics (Army)

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Blaydon of 14 June 2013, Official Report, column 353W, on counter-terrorism and human rights, if he will place in the Library a copy of the legal and technical briefing on the use by the UK of remotely piloted aircraft as discussed with the UN Special Rapporteur on Counter-terrorism and Human Rights. [R]

Mark Francois: Ben Emmerson QC, the UN Special Rapporteur on Counter-terrorism and Human Rights, was briefed by Ministry of Defence officials during his recent inquiry. No briefing papers were provided to Mr Emmerson.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 October 2013, Official Report, column 636W, on Gulf States, 
	(1)  whether RAF personnel stationed in support of the US in the Gulf have access to US intelligence and analysis used for the purposes of drone strikes; [R]
	(2)  whether RAF personnel stationed in support of the US in the Gulf includes drone pilots or sensor operators. [R]

Mark Francois: It is the long-standing position of Her Majesty's Government not to comment specifically on intelligence matters.

TRANSPORT

Biofuels

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on (a) the draft EU legislation on biofuels, (b) the cap on the contribution of food-based biofuels towards the 10 per cent target of renewable energy in transport by 2020, (c) multiple counting for advanced biofuels and (d) emissions resulting from indirect land-use change.

Stephen Hammond: Ministers meet regularly with EU counterparts to discuss a range of issues. The UK is currently actively engaged with representatives of the European Council from all member states. Negotiations on the proposed Directive are continuing and we continue to make the case for effective action on ILUC. We hope that an agreement can be reached as soon as possible.
	The European Commission proposed a Directive in October 2012 to address the issue of the Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) impacts of biofuels. The European Parliament voted on its proposal in plenary in September 2013.

Driving Offences: Insurance

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of uninsured drivers in the UK.

Robert Goodwill: It is not possible to calculate the number of uninsured drivers. However, the number of uninsured vehicles in Great Britain has fallen to 1.2 million from 1.4 million in 2010 due to a combination of police enforcement activity and the continuous insurance enforcement scheme.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the likely reduction in the journey time by train between Leeds and Manchester following completion of High Speed 2.

Robert Goodwill: Journey time between Leeds and Manchester is expected to reduce in 2018 with electrification of the Leeds-Manchester route. Current plans for High Speed 2 do not include a direct Leeds-Manchester line.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether the reference to the suggested weightings of his Department's policy aims in Appendix 1 of the commissioned HS2 Property Bond report by Deloitte LLP relate to the criteria which will inform the Government's decision on the compensation scheme for High Speed 2;
	(2)  whether his Department has provided Deloitte LLP with a statement that the five policy criteria that will inform the decision on compensation relating to High Speed 2 are to be regarded as of equal importance;
	(3)  whether representatives of his Department attended the workshop that Deloitte LLP arranged to review the various options against the five policy criteria report.

Robert Goodwill: Subsequent to receipt of the reference to relative weightings you refer to, the Department instructed Deloitte LLP to produce analysis based upon an equal weighting of policy criteria. Representatives did not attend the Deloitte LLP workshop on policy options and as the Deloitte report itself makes clear, the advice produced and published was generated independently of the Department and based upon an equal weighting of the policy criteria designed to inform the decision on further discretionary compensation for Phase One of HS2.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many HS2 Exceptional Hardship Scheme (EHS) applications have been rejected on grounds that they failed to fulfil EHS criteria (a) one, (b) two, (c) three, (d) four and (e) five.

Robert Goodwill: As at 20 November 2013:
	
		
			 Criterion Applications rejected 
			 Phase 1  
			 One 29 
			 Two 119 
			 Three 196 
			 Four 0 
			 Five 286 
			   
			 Phase 2  
			 One 1 
			 Two 4 
			 Three 13 
			 Four 0 
			 Five 11 
			 Notes: 1. Applications that have been accepted overall, despite not meeting one or more of the criteria, have been excluded from the table. 2. The above totals reflect all rejected applications including all reapplications and those from applicants whose later reapplications were accepted.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to amend the safeguarding zone to include those properties which HS2 Ltd has identified as being at risk of compulsory purchase but which fall outside the current safeguarding zone boundaries.

Robert Goodwill: It is intended that safeguarding will be updated periodically to reflect ongoing design developments. We are planning for the next review of the boundaries to take place following deposit of the hybrid Bill.

Large Goods Vehicles

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 24 October 2013, Official Report, column 255W, on large goods vehicles, with regard to manoeuvres of longer semi-trailers on the urban road network, if he will clarify his assessment of this matter with regard to the impact of tail sweep on full lock with right angle on (a) kerbs, footways and street furniture placed at the advised distance from the kerb line of 0.45 metres, (b) pedestrians on narrow footways, (c) frontages of buildings fronting narrow footways, (d) vehicles parked kerbside on street and (e) cyclists during passing or turning manoeuvres; and if he will make a comparative assessment of his estimates in this matter and those of the Campaign for Better Transport.

Robert Goodwill: It is important to note that all longer semi-trailers must comply with the manoeuvrability requirements set out in national construction and use legislation and so are able to match the actual performance of existing semi-trailers and are suitable for use on the road. Indeed, some longer semi-trailers have an outswing of only 250 mm which is equivalent to or less than a 13.6 m standard sized semi-trailer or a standard length bus.
	The full lock steering manoeuvre that was requested at the demonstration in June was outside the scope of the trial and the tail swing that occurred would not have been markedly different had it been performed on a standard sized 13.6 m trailer, a rigid HGV or a bus. It would be very rare for any articulated lorry to use a full steering lock on UK roads given that this can potentially cause serious damage to its air and/or electrical lines which could consequently cause the lorry's brakes and/or electrics to fail (and other problems to arise) not to mention the subsequent danger to other road users and surroundings.
	Therefore because this type of manoeuvre is a rare one, it would vary between longer semi-trailers and is unusual for other large vehicles, we do not consider the Campaign for Better Transport's estimates to be valid across the trial and a type of assessment which we should also make for comparative purposes.

Motorways: Accidents

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many deaths have occurred on motorways in each year since 2010.

Robert Goodwill: The following table sets out the fatalities that have been recorded on the motorway network in England from 2010 to 2012, the latest date for which validated information is available:
	
		
			  Fatalities 
			 2010 110 
			 2011 90 
			 2012 78

Passenger Ships: Accidents

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the investigation into the sinking of the Wacker Quacker 1 vessel in Liverpool on 15 June 2013.

Stephen Hammond: An investigation is being carried out by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB). This has included conducting interviews with those involved, a practical reconstruction of the accident, and forensic analysis of sections of the hull. As a result of these tests an MAIB recommendation was made to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) on 5 August 2013 relating to their requirements of operators of these types of amphibious vessels to demonstrate effective levels of buoyancy. The investigation is continuing with a report expected to be published early in 2014.
	On 29 September, a second accident occurred involving a similar vessel on the Thames in London, the Cleopatra, which caught fire requiring the abandonment of the vessel by its crew and passengers. This accident is also being investigated by the MAIB, and the findings of this and the investigation into Wacker Quacker 1 will be published in a combined report.
	On 28 October the MAIB issued an interim Safety Bulletin containing a recommendation to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency that these types of vessels should not be permitted to operate in the UK until satisfactory levels of safety can be assured under all feasible operating conditions.

Railways: Construction

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will impose a moratorium on building on disused railway paths.

Stephen Hammond: Network Rail's land disposals are regulated and monitored by the independent Office of Rail Regulation through a condition in its network licence. The purpose of the licence condition is to protect land that may be required for the future development of the rail network, and to prevent the disposal of that land against the public interest.
	The Government's National Planning Policy Framework states that local planning authorities should identify and protect, where there is robust evidence, sites and routes which could be critical in developing infrastructure to widen transport choice.

Road Traffic Control

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of (a) transparency and (b) public consultation in bids to the Local Pinch Point Fund by local transport authorities and local highway authorities.

Robert Goodwill: As part of the application process for submitting a Local Pinch Point Fund scheme bid, all promoting authorities are required to publish a version of the bid documentation on their website to ensure local transparency.
	Public consultation, if required, for any Local Pinch Point Fund scheme is the responsibility of the promoting authority. However many of the bids submitted to the Department for assessment did highlight the engagement they have had or were due to have with their stakeholders on scheme proposals.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the full actual budget for local road maintenance was from 2010-11 to 2012-13 in cash terms; and what estimate he has made of the level of that budget in cash terms in each year to 2020-21.

Robert Goodwill: All highways maintenance funding allocated to local highway authorities from the Department for Transport for highways maintenance is in cash terms.
	A breakdown of the capital funding allocated for local highways maintenance from 2010-11 to 2012-13 is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Financial year Amount (£ million) 
			 2010-11 Highways Maintenance Capital Block Grant Funding(1,2) 920 
		
	
	
		
			 2011-12 Highways Maintenance Capital Block Grant Funding(1) 1006 
			 2012-13 Highways Maintenance Capital Block Grant Funding(1) 779 
			 (1) This includes additional funding agreed within the financial year. (2) These were indicative funding allocations as authorities were allowed to borrow against the funding allocation they received through supported borrowing arrangements that were in place at the time. 
		
	
	The Department is also funding highways maintenance projects in Portsmouth, Birmingham, Sheffield, Isle of Wight and the London Borough of Hounslow through the Private Finance Initiative.
	The funding for road repairs in London, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are matters for the respective Administrations.
	The 2013 spending round announcement on 26 June 2013 commits to providing just under £6 billion in cash terms to local highway authorities over the six year period from 2015-16 to 2020-21—this equates to £976 million per year and highlights this Government's commitment to the country's most valuable public asset and to ensure that our local highways are fit for purpose.
	Local authorities are also able to use revenue funding, allocated by the Department of Communities and Local Government through the Revenue Support Grant for maintaining their local highways.
	Neither revenue or capital highways maintenance block funding is ring-fenced and it is for local highway authorities to decide upon their spending priorities across the whole range of services that they provide.
	The Government believes there is scope to maximise returns from highways investment and deliver efficient and effective services. The Department for Transport is supporting the sector by sponsoring a £6 million Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme. Further information including the work that the Programme is delivering is available at the following web link:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/hmep/

JUSTICE

Animal Welfare Act 2006

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prison sentences handed down for offences under (a) section four and (b) section eight of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in (i) England and (ii) Wales in each year since 2007; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many successful prosecutions there have been for offences under (a) section four and (b) section eight of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in (i) England and (ii) Wales in each year since 2007; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  how many of the prison sentences awarded to those convicted of offences under section four of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in (a) England and (b) Wales for each year since 2007 were for (i) one month, (ii) two, (iii) three, (iv) four, (v) five and (vi) six months; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and offenders found guilty and sentenced at all courts, with breakdown of immediate custodial sentence lengths, for selected offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, in (i) England and (ii) Wales, from 2007 to 2012 (the latest available) can be viewed in the following table.
	Court proceedings for the calendar year 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
	The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and sentenced to custody at all courts under S.4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 have increased between 2008 to 2012 in England and Wales.
	The proportion of offenders given custody for all offences listed in the following table has increased since 2010.
	
		
			 Defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and offenders found guilty and sentenced at all courts, with breakdown of immediate custodial sentence lengths, for selected offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006(1, 2), in England and Wales, 2007 to 2012(3, 4, 5) 
			 England 
			  Proceeded against Found guilty Sentenced Of which: To immediate custody 
			 Causing, permitting or failing to prevent unnecessary suffering(1)     
			 2007 16 15 15 — 
			 2008(6) 774 589 589 45 
			 2009 1,089 833 833 71 
			 2010 1,000 795 796 46 
			 2011 1,173 931 930 71 
			 2012 1,295 1,024 1,024 99 
			      
			 Offences relating to animal fights(2)     
			 2007 — — — — 
			 2008(6) 5 5 5 2 
			 2009 16 9 9 5 
			 2010 3 2 2 1 
			 2011 17 9 9 6 
			 2012 21 13 13 5 
		
	
	
		
			  Breakdown of immediate custodial sentence length 
			  Up to and including 1 month Over 1 month and up to and including 2 months Over 2 months and up to and including 3 months Over 3 months and up to and including 4 months Over 4 months and up to and including 5 months Over 5 months and up to and including 6 months 
			 Causing, permitting or failing to prevent unnecessary suffering(1)       
			 2007 — — — — — — 
			 2008(6) 5 4 15 15 3 3 
			 2009 10 9 19 13 15 5 
			 2010 2 8 17 6 9 4 
			 2011 3 15 22 11 14 6 
			 2012 3 13 23 27 23 10 
			        
			 Offences relating to animal fights(2)       
			 2007 — — — — — — 
			 2008(6) — — — 1 — 1 
			 2009 — — 2 1 1 1 
			 2010 — — — — — 1 
			 2011 — 1 3 1 1 — 
			 2012 — — — — 2 3 
		
	
	
		
			 Wales 
			  Proceeded against Found guilty Sentenced Of which: To immediate custody 
			 Causing, permitting or failing to prevent unnecessary suffering(1)     
			 2007 8 7 7 — 
			 2008(6) 58 46 46 4 
			 2009 86 69 70 5 
			 2010 77 61 61 4 
			 2011 104 79 79 10 
			 2012 90 77 77 4 
			      
			 Offences relating to animal fights(2)     
			 2007 — — — — 
			 2008(6) — — — — 
			 2009 — — — — 
			 2010 — — — — 
			 2011 — — — — 
			 2012 — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			  Breakdown of immediate custodial sentence length 
			  Up to and including 1 month Over 1 month and up to and including 2 months Over 2 months and up to and including 3 months Over 3 months and up to and including 4 months Over 4 months and up to and including 5 months Over 5 months and up to and including 6 months 
			 Causing, permitting or failing to prevent unnecessary suffering(1)       
			 2007 — — — — — — 
			 2008(6) 1 2 — 1 — — 
			 2009 — — 1 1 2 1 
			 2010 — 1 1 2 — — 
			 2011 — 1 2 1 3 3 
			 2012 — — — 2 2 — 
			        
			 Offences relating to animal fights(2)       
			 2007 — — — — — — 
			 2008(6) — — — — — — 
			 2009 — — — — — — 
			 2010 — — — — — — 
			 2011 — — — — — — 
			 2012 — — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			 '—' = Nil (1) Includes offences under SS.4 and 32(1) of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. (2) Includes offences under SS.8 and 32(1) of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. (3) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (4) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (5) The number of offenders sentenced can differ from those found guilty as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty in a particular year, and committed for sentence at the Crown Court, may be sentenced in the following year. (6 )Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates' court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Courts: Buildings

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the difference between the market value of disused court buildings and the price for which they are sold.

Shailesh Vara: The market value is the guide price parameters set by the selling agents. When disposing of surplus property assets, the Ministry of Justice will always seek to achieve the best available overall value for money for the taxpayer in accordance with Government guidelines.

Foster Care

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many intensive fostering placements there have been in England and Wales to date; what financial resources have been allocated to the Intensive Fostering Programme in each year since its inception; and what the average cost of an intensive fostering placement per resident per week is.

Shailesh Vara: Intensive fostering is available as a high intensity requirement of the youth rehabilitation order, the main community sentence for young offenders aged under 18 years, as a specified alternative to custody. It provides highly intensive care for up to 12 months for the offender and a comprehensive programme of support for their family. There are four sites in Wessex, Staffordshire, London and Trafford that serve a wide catchment area.
	£18,032,003 has been provided to the four sites since they began in April 2005 through direct grants from the YJB. The total grant provided each year since April 2005 for the Intensive Fostering programme is solely provided by the YJB and is set out in the following table.
	The average cost of an intensive fostering placement varies across the four sites. A new cost calculator has been developed which is being piloted to aid budget planning. Using this, the Staffordshire site has calculated the average annual cost of a placement to be £94,333. However due to a number of reasons, including that placements can vary in length it is not possible to calculate an average cost per week.
	Between April 2005 and September 2013 175 young people started, on intensive fostering programmes. Of these, 41 young people started in London, 52 in Staffordshire, 73 in Wessex and nine in Trafford.
	
		
			  Grant level (£) 
			 2013-14 2,133,704.00 
			 2012-13 2,133,704.00 
			 2011-12 2,133,704.00 
			 2010-11 2,353,695.00 
			 2009-10 2,376,827.00 
			 2008-09 2,324,250.00 
			 2007-08 1,412,000.00 
			 2006-07 1,412,000.00 
			 2005-06 1,424,631.00 
			 2004-05 327,488.00 
			 Total 18,032,003.00

HM Courts and Tribunals Service

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department is taking to ensure that HM Courts and Tribunals Service has accurate information regarding defendants' expenditure on rent or mortgage when assessing fines.

Shailesh Vara: All defendants summoned to court are required to provide a statement of assets and other financial circumstances. To assist, with the summons, they are provided with a form (MC100), which allows them to detail their income and major outgoings and includes a section on how much they pay in rent or mortgage payments. It is an offence for the defendant not to provide the court with a statement of assets and other financial circumstances following an official request.
	The court uses this information when deciding whether to impose a fine, the level at which any such fine should be set, and its repayment terms.
	The court is unable to obtain information on defendants’ rent and mortgage expenditure unless defendants provide this information.

Judiciary

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will introduce measures to prevent (a) current and (b) former members of the judiciary from holding shares in private companies which supply services to the Criminal Justice System; and if he will make a statement.

Shailesh Vara: The Government has no plans for introducing measures prohibiting either serving or retired members of the judiciary from holding shares in private companies in general, or those that supply services to the criminal justice system in particular.

Judiciary

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which previous convictions are held by current serving (a) magistrates and (b) judges.

Shailesh Vara: There is no central record of such information. Policies and procedures are in place to ensure that no individual can be appointed to, or remain in, judicial office if his or her conviction for an offence is regarded as being incompatible with holding such office.

Magistrates' Courts

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on magistrates' court benches running a consultation programme before undertaking a merger.

Shailesh Vara: There is no Government policy on magistrates court benches running a consultation. A consultation exercise would be undertaken to inform a decision on bench mergers in accordance with the legislation governing bench mergers.

Magistrates' Courts: Wales

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have discussed the proposed merger of Wrexham Magistrates' Court Bench and Mold Magistrates' Court Bench and the Chair of Wrexham Magistrates' Court Bench.

Shailesh Vara: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), has not discussed Bench mergers. In March 2013 a consultation on the review of Local Justice Areas in North Wales was published. This consultation was withdrawn and no changes were implemented. Since then, Bench Chairs locally have been discussing with HMCTS officials a potential merger of the Mold (Flintshire) and Wrexham (Wrexham Maelor) Bench, but this would require consultation before any such proposal could be formalised.

Repossession Orders: Poole

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many claims leading to orders for the repossession of property by (a) mortgage lenders and (b) landlords there have been in Poole constituency in each quarter since 2007.

Shailesh Vara: The available information required to answer this question is currently being collated. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as it is available. A copy will be placed in the House Library.

Third Parties (Rights Against Insurers) Act 2010

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the Third Parties (Rights Against Insurers) Act 2010 will be commenced in full.

Shailesh Vara: I refer to the written ministerial statement made by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, my hon. Friend the Member for Maidstone and The Weald (Mrs Grant), on 25 April 2013, Official Report, column 71WS. The position remains that we intend to introduce legislation to amend the 2010 Act as soon as parliamentary time permits and to commence the 2010 Act as amended as soon as reasonably possible thereafter.

Young Offenders

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average number of young offenders dealt with by a Young Offender Team was in each year since 2009-10.

Jeremy Wright: Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) are the statutory multi-agency bodies who deliver youth justice on the ground. There are 158 YOTs in England and Wales, which sit within, and are accountable to, local authorities. YOTs work with a range of different services from prevention to enforcement. Youth Offending Teams play a key role in diverting young people away from crime.
	The table shows the average number of young people per YOT who received a disposal in each year between 2009-10 to 2011-12, in England and Wales. The Youth Justice Board does not collect data on the average number of young people who have been in contact with a YOT in each of the above years. Therefore the data relates only to those who have received a disposal and may not be representative of the full number of young people in contact with a YOT.
	Figures are provided against the backdrop of numbers of first time entrants falling from 62,555 to 36,677 and numbers of young people (under 18) in custody falling from an average of 2,418 to 1,963 during the same period.
	
		
			  Average number of young people who received a disposal in each year per YOT 
			 2009-10 681 
			 2010-11 547 
			 2011-12 420 
		
	
	These data have been provided by the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales and are provided for each financial year. Data are only available from 2009-10 to 2011-12. Data on the number of young people receiving disposals in 2012-13 will be published in the 2012-13 Youth Justice Statistics in January 2014.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bovine Tuberculosis

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent on (a) badger injectable vaccine research, (b) badger oral vaccine research and (c) cattle vaccines and associated research in each of the last three years; what such spending is planned for the future; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: Past and projected DEFRA research funding on oral badger vaccines, injectable badger vaccines and cattle vaccines and associated diagnostics are set out in the following table:
	
		
			 £ 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 
			 Oral badger vaccine research 2,476,273 2,127,448 1,684,948 2,027,956 2,008,748 2,427,390 
			 Injectable badger vaccine research 301,943 136,178 87,959 66,387 40,000 — 
			 Cattle vaccine and associated diagnostics research 2,683,843 2,210,441 2,709,163 3,994,677 2,041,706 1,916,714 
		
	
	Please note that the figures for FY 2013-14 onwards are estimates and subject to change. The figures exclude the costs of cattle vaccine field trials, which may commence within this timeframe.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) active and (b) planned Government research programmes his Department is undertaking involving the use of live badgers; what the purpose of each programme is; which organisation is carrying out this research; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: DEFRA currently funds research on live badgers in four research areas:
	1. Oral TB vaccines for badgers; the purpose of this programme is to look at the efficacy and safety of different oral TB vaccines and determining optimal strategies for bait deployment in wild badgers.
	2. Badger Immunocontraceptives; the purpose of this programme is to determine whether an injectable contraceptive can reduce badger reproduction. In an urban setting this is associated with reducing sett expansion thereby reducing damage to property. Application in a rural setting may contribute to disease control/eradication.
	3. Field approaches to identifying Mycobacterium bovis infection in badger populations; the purpose of this programme is to gather test data and samples for diagnostic test development from a well-studied wild badger population.
	4. A study to examine the interactions between cattle and badgers; the purpose of this project is to look at where and when badgers and cattle come in contact with each other on farms.
	The first three research programmes are carried out by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratory Agency, while the cattle-badger contact work is carried out by the Zoological Society of London
	DEFRA currently has no plans for research on live badgers outside of the four areas mentioned above.

Bovine Tuberculosis

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to introduce a programme of badger vaccinations; and in what locations that programme is being carried out.

George Eustice: DEFRA resourced the research leading to the licensing of the injectable badger vaccine (BadgerBCG) in 2010. It has funded the five year research project in Gloucestershire (the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project) aimed at testing farmer acceptability of badger vaccination and learning practical lessons on vaccination.
	Since 2012 DEFRA has offered start-up grant funding for those who want to undertake badger vaccination or train as a lay badger vaccinator. Grants have been made for vaccination in Gloucestershire, Cheshire, Leicestershire and Cornwall.
	Because of the low uptake of this grant to date, we are considering what more can be done to encourage vaccination and deliver a more coordinated approach especially in the ‘Edge’ of the high risk area.

Bovine Tuberculosis

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much it costs to vaccinate a badger against tuberculosis; and what estimate he has made of the cost of vaccinating all badgers in England.

George Eustice: The cost of vaccinating individual badgers is susceptible to a range of local variables including topography, weather conditions and the number of badgers in the designated area.. We have estimated the average cost of vaccinating badgers by area, the figures for which can be found in the impact assessment published at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/182452/bovine-tb-impact-assessment.pdf
	There is no current estimate of the cost of vaccinating all badgers in England. We are keen to learn from others' experiences on badger vaccination and have taken note of the Welsh Government's report on the first year of vaccination in the Intensive Action Area, which measures around 288km(2). The report quotes a delivery cost of around £943,000 in year one, with 1,424 badgers having been vaccinated.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Durham

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of whether (a) legal and (b) illegal cattle movements were a cause of the recent tuberculosis outbreak in cattle in County Durham; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: Investigations into the cause of the recent bovine TB breakdown in County Durham are continuing. However, the evidence so far strongly suggests that this incident was caused by the lawful movement of undetected infected cattle from the high TB risk area. In line with the new policy for TB breakdowns in the low risk areas of England, introduced by DEFRA in January, all cattle herds within a 3km radius of the TB infected herd are now being tested for the disease.

Cattle

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many cattle in the English and Welsh beef industry were slaughtered due to (a) fertility issues, (b) mastitis, (c) infectious bovine rhinotracheities, (d) bovine viral diarrhoea, (e) Johne's disease, (f) liver fluke, (g) nutrition, (h) calf pneumonia, (i) calf scour, (j) parasitic gastroenteritis or lungworm and (k) bovine tuberculosis in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many cattle in the English and Welsh dairy industry were slaughtered due to (a) fertility issues, (b) mastitis, (c) lameness, (d) bovine viral diarrhoea, (e) Johne's disease, (f) genetic issues, (g) nutrition, (h) calf pneumonia, (i) calf scour, (j) parasitic gastroenteritis or lungworm and (k) bovine tuberculosis in each of the last five years.

George Eustice: Neither DEFRA nor its Agencies collect data on the number of cattle slaughtered due to diseases which are not notifiable or under statutory control. Scanning surveillance intelligence and partnership working with industry and the veterinary profession enable us to understand new and re-emerging animal disease threats that may meet one of the four Government reasons for intervention.
	For cattle slaughtered because of bovine tuberculosis, the figures are publicly available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/incidence-of-tuberculosis-tb-in-cattle-in-great-britain
	These figures are not available off-the-shelf for the individual sectors. However, for England and Wales, the total numbers of cattle slaughtered since 2008 are:
	
		
			  England Wales Total 
			 2008 27,816 11,401 39,217 
			 2009 26,669 11,671 38,340 
			 2010 24,601 7,619 32,220 
			 2011 26,469 8,068 34,537 
			 2012 28,286 9,287 37,573 
			 2013(1) 18,113 4,482 22,595 
			 Total — — 204,482 
			 (1 )Data until 31 August.

Horses

George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals on the control of fly grazing.

George Eustice: There are no plans to introduce further legislation to tackle fly grazing. The Government considers that a combination of existing legislation, joined-up working and the new measures, currently before Parliament in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill, can be used to tackle fly grazing.

Moths

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to protect moths; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: The UK Government's approach to wildlife conservation is set out in Biodiversity 2020, our strategy for England's wildlife and ecosystem services. As part of this strategy we are implementing a range of measures and initiatives that will benefit moths:
	Two ‘candidate’ Special Areas of Conservation supporting Fisher's estuarine moth, a European Protected Species, have recently been submitted to the European Commission.
	142 moth species are listed on section 41 (s.41) of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act (2006) as species of principal importance. Natural England is funding work on 36 of these species through its Species Recovery Programme.
	6.1 million hectares of England's farmland is currently managed under Entry Level Environmental Stewardship (and 1.4 m ha under the Higher Level), providing habitat for an estimated one third of all s.41 moth species.
	We have made £7.5 million available for 12 new Nature Improvement Areas to deliver landscape scale habitat restoration, several of which include specific measures to help moths and events to record them.
	Finally, the proposed National Pollinator Strategy will consider the requirements of all pollinating insects.

Natural England

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he takes to ensure that licensees meet their financial obligations once they have formally advised Natural England that sufficient funds are in place to complete control operation.

George Eustice: It is for Natural England, under condition 1a of the original licences issued in respect of the pilot areas, to be satisfied with the details of the funding arrangements provided by the licensees. Natural England confirmed in February 2013 that this condition had been met when authorisation letters were issued to each pilot area.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the gender breakdown is of Government sponsored apprenticeships in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Matthew Hancock: holding answer 21 November 2013
	Information on Apprenticeship starts in England by gender is published in Supplementary Tables to a Statistical First Release:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/5EB06887-64FE-41A6-8275-9B652B50EB63/0/Oct2013_Apprenticeship_Starts_REVISED.xls
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/
	The Department does not collect Further Education information relating to the devolved Administrations.

Business: Billing

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answers of 12 September 2013, Official Report, column 853W and 11 September 2013, Official Report, column 738W, on business: billing, what progress his Department has made in considering a range of options to tackle ongoing late payment problems; what work and consultation his Department has carried out to date as part of this process; and what legislative and non-legislative options his Department is considering.

Matthew Hancock: As the Prime Minister announced on 14 October, we will shortly be publishing a consultation paper on late payment.
	The Government appreciates that late payment is a complex issue. That is why we are keen to hear views from right across the business community on what measures should be taken to tackle late payment.
	The consultation paper will look at a range of options, both legislative and non-legislative. Any future measures will need to be proportionate and effective for the business community as a whole.

Business: Government Assistance

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he plans to commission an independent assessment of the Growth Accelerator scheme.

Matthew Hancock: Work to evaluate the GrowthAccelerator scheme is under way. The client, stakeholder and investor surveys have been conducted by an independent market research firm RMG: Clarity. Grant Thornton's first annual report on GrowthAccelerator, published in July 2013 included insights from these surveys and a copy is available in the Libraries of the House.
	The Department expects that the full economic impact of the GrowthAccelerator scheme will only be realised in the longer term (over five years or more). The first full economic assessment of the scheme is planned for 2016/17; an independent researcher would be commissioned to undertake this work.

Business: Government Assistance

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will provide an update on the Growth Vouchers programme; and by what date he expects the scheme to be operational.

Matthew Hancock: We have recently completed an EU procurement process to appoint private sector partners to manage the randomised controlled trials in five areas across England. They will deliver help to those seeking advice for the first time and gather evidence on the impact of external advice. The Growth Voucher programme is due to launch in January 2014.
	The programme will also be supported by a new online marketplace that will make it easier for businesses to identify the right type of private sector support to meet their needs and redeem their vouchers. This is being developed independently by a company already operating in this area.

Business: Loans

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will provide an update on plans to make available business lending data for each region on a weekly basis.

Matthew Hancock: The main high street banks (Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC, Barclays, Santander, Yorkshire and Clydesdale, and Lloyds Banking Group), as well as Nationwide Building Society agreed to publish bank by bank lending data in up to 10,000 postcode areas following negotiations with Government during the progress of the Banking Reform Bill. This was announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the right hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander), in July and the process will begin from late December.
	The data will be published by the British Bankers' Association (BBA) and the Council of Mortgage Lenders on a quarterly basis and show the outstanding stock of lending that has been committed to customers across three categories:
	loans and overdrafts to SMEs;
	mortgages;
	unsecured personal loans (excluding credit cards).
	Each postcode will be broken down by category to show the exact lending being made to each.
	This publication of UK lending data will provide significantly more detailed disclosure than in the USA, which is often cited as the best example of disclosure of lending data.

Business: Loans

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the progress made by banks in relation to each of the 17 commitments they made under the Business Finance Taskforce; and what steps his Department is taking to monitor the delivery of those commitments.

Matthew Hancock: The Better Business Finance Taskforce commitments were made voluntarily by the main high street banks and the British Bankers Association (BBA) in October 2010.
	Government is supportive of the aims of the Taskforce commitments and believes that useful progress had been made across the commitments, in particular since the establishment of an appeals process for small business with independent oversight, a nationwide business mentoring programme with over 1,000 bank mentors and the establishment of the BDRC SME Finance Monitor which is the most robust publicly available survey of business attitudes to financial conditions.
	Ministers and officials regularly liaise with the BBA and individual banks on where they can build on progress so far, and improve and expand their support for smaller businesses seeking finance.
	The banks and the BBA also provide regular updates to the industry led Business Finance roundtable and Small Business Economic Forum on their progress to date.

Company Accounts

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 11 September 2013, Official Report, column 739W, on company accounts, how many firms which have received letters from Companies House regarding the disclosure of overseas subsidiaries (a) have and (b) have not acted to bring their records up to date.

Michael Fallon: Companies House wrote to 124 companies regarding their disclosure of overseas subsidiaries. All 124 companies have acted to bring their records up to date.

Conditions of Employment

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the effect of (a) zero hours contracts, (b) sub-contracting work previously provided by directly-employed staff and (c) the activities of employment agencies on (i) the integrity of the national minimum wage and (ii) demand for wage supplements to workers through the benefits system.

Jo Swinson: The Government is committed to the national minimum wage (NMW) and its effective enforcement. We are absolutely clear that anyone entitled to be paid the minimum wage should receive it.
	If an individual is a worker and aged 16 or over they are entitled to the NMW. People who are on zero hours contracts, are employed through an employment agency or perform sub-contracted work previously provided by directly-employed staff are workers and therefore entitled to the NMW.
	The Government is taking a multi-faceted approach to NMW compliance which includes targeted communications to raise awareness and help employers to comply, as well as targeted enforcement action in sectors or areas where there is a higher risk of workers not getting paid the legal minimum wage.
	Earlier this year government was made aware of, and took note of, anecdotal evidence that raised concerns of abuse of zero hour contracts. As a result officials undertook, over the summer, a fact finding exercise to explore how these contracts work and what the issues were.
	In September the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), said he would publish a consultation seeking views on zero hours contracts and how to address the concerns raised in the summer fact-finding exercise. We intend to publish this consultation shortly.
	The Department has made no assessment on the demand for wage supplements to workers through the benefits system.

Industrial Disputes Independent Review

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  whether the remit of the announced Independent Review into Industrial Disputes, chaired by Bruce Carr QC, will include the issue of employee blacklisting;
	(2)  whether the announced Independent Review into Industrial Disputes, chaired by Bruce Carr QC, will be taking evidence in public and accepting written submissions.

Jo Swinson: The proposed review will be a UK-wide review of workforce relations in critical industrial sectors. The intention is to have a balanced review involving a range of stakeholders, including employers and employee representatives. The full details of the review will be announced in due course, once they have been finalised.

Industrial Disputes Independent Review

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether any of his Department's (a) budget and (b) staff will be allocated to the announced Independent Review into Industrial Disputes, chaired by Bruce Carr QC.

Jo Swinson: A secretariat of civil servants will be necessary to assist the review with its work. The team will be resourced jointly from BIS and Cabinet Office and draw on resource and expertise from elsewhere in Government.

Industrial Disputes Independent Review

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the announced Independent Review into Industrial Disputes, chaired by Bruce Carr QC, when the Review's terms of reference and membership will be issued; when its work will (a) start and (b) end; and whether a final report of its findings will be produced.

Jo Swinson: The review will start once the full details have been finalised. It is expected that the review will last six months. The review will report to jointly to the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable).

Low Pay

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if his Department will fund an independent research unit to analyse the costs and benefits of implementing a living wage in each economic sector and region of the United Kingdom.

Jo Swinson: We continue to keep our research plans under review and allocate resources on the basis of best value for money for the taxpayer. This Department is keen to be as open and transparent as possible and my officials are happy to meet with you to share analysis and talk through these important issues. In addition we intend to release the advice and guidance, from officials to ministers, on the living wage by spring next year.
	The Government supports businesses that choose to pay the living wage when it is affordable and not at the expense of jobs.
	Our primary policy for the low paid is the national minimum wage which is independently set by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) at a level that maximises the wages of the low paid without damaging their employment prospects.
	The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), wants to see faster rises in the minimum wage and has asked the LPC to look into what conditions are necessary to allow this to happen faster than current conditions allow, taking employment into consideration. As part of the NMW cycle the Government provides evidence to the LPC on what we would like them to consider when setting the rate and on top of that, will provide evidence on the additional assessment by January 2014.

New Businesses: Buildings

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 4 June 2013, Official Report, column 1067W, how many pilot spaces for start ups are currently open to businesses; where each location is based; what the capacity is of each in the number of businesses they are able to accommodate; how many businesses are currently using premises at each; and when each began providing premises to businesses under the Government's scheme.

Matthew Hancock: holding answer 7 November 2013
	To date 78 Space for Growth locations offering around 1,600 workstation spaces, are available to registered users of the scheme or organisations prepared to take over whole spaces. The number of users registering with the Scheme to date has been modest, reflecting the low key marketing and soft launch. Marketing and publicity is being gradually increased as the number of workspaces, case study stories, and users grow to the level where it reaches a critical mass and can be talked about and promoted nationally.
	Third party locations have developed as hubs for supporting local businesses, with external organisations using the locations for meetings, events, and business advice sessions.
	It is not possible to give an exact figure for the capacity of each location because the private sector providers running them are operating in a flexible way, in order to best meet the needs of the business users.

New Businesses: Buildings

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to his answer of 1 March 2013, Official Report, column 742W, many staff from his Department have been allocated to the Start Up Spaces scheme and its delivery.

Matthew Hancock: holding answer 7 November 2013
	Further to the reply of the Minister of State for Business and Energy, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Michael Fallon), to the hon. Member on 1 March 2013, Official Report, column 742W, officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Government Property Unit have worked together with other Departments on the pilot scheme to provide space for start-ups and the Cabinet Office ‘Government Space for Growth’ initiative, contributing 3.5 full-time-equivalent members of staff.
	BIS now has allocated the equivalent of 0.5 full-time-equivalent member of staff to oversee the day to day running of the four pilot scheme spaces opened in Bristol, Wimbledon, and Peterborough and supporting Cabinet Office on ‘Government Space for Growth’.

Regional Growth Fund

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 11 November 2013, Official Report, column 479, on Regional Growth Fund, what the monetary value was of the award made on 23 August 2013.

Michael Fallon: £2.658 million.

Regional Growth Fund

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 25 October 2013, Official Report, column 306, on Regional Growth Fund, what the monetary value was of the award made on 19 April 2013.

Michael Fallon: £4 million.

Regional Growth Fund

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many winning bidders under round three of the Regional Growth Fund have not received a final agreed offer.

Michael Fallon: One.

Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics Network

Rebecca Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with STEMnet on the evaluation of the higher education careers awareness pilot.

David Willetts: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has not had any discussions with STEMNET about their programmes including the higher education careers awareness pilot.
	Officials from BIS regularly meet with STEMNET to monitor and discuss the progress of their outreach programmes including the pilot extension of the STEM Ambassador scheme into higher education institutions.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Carbon Emissions

David Davies: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much has been spent by the Government Equalities Office on offsetting costs for energy-related carbon dioxide in the last year for which figures are available.

Helen Grant: The Government Equalities Office has not spent any money towards offsetting costs for energy-related carbon dioxide.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Employment Schemes: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of the Minister of State of 18 November 2013, Official Report, column 942, on Youth Contract wage incentives, how many jobs starts supported by wage incentives there have been in each month since its inception.

Esther McVey: The first wage incentive statistics for the period April 2012 up to May 2013 were published on 22 July 2013. The statistics can be accessed by the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/224572/Wage_Incentive_job _starts_adhoc_released.pdf

Health and Safety Executive

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many inspectors are employed in the Health and Safety Executive's (a) Field Operations Directorate, (b) Hazardous Industries Directorate and (c) Office for Nuclear Regulation; and how many of the inspectors in each such category currently carry out site inspections and accident investigations.

Michael Penning: The information is not available in the format requested. However the following table provides the information in respect of total inspectors and inspectors employed in frontline work.
	
		
			 At 30 September 2013: Field operations directorate Hazardous installations directorate Office for nuclear regulation 
			 Total inspectors of health and safety 616 361 268 
			 Of which:    
			 Are frontline 595 342 236 
			 Notes: 1. The figures are for substantive full-time equivalents rounded to the nearest whole number. 2. The figures include regulatory and discipline specialist inspectors. 3. The Health and Safety Executive(HSE)frontline inspectors carry out a range of roles including inspection and accident investigation, but also other significant regulatory activities such as the assessment of major hazard site safety cases; asbestos licensing; working with dutyholders and stakeholders in targeted sectors to identify, develop and evaluate alternative intervention strategies etc.

Health and Safety Executive

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Health and Safety Executive inspectors currently carry out front-line site inspections and accident investigations; and how many such inspectors there were in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011 and (e) 2012.

Michael Penning: The answer is provided in the table:
	
		
			  Frontline inspectors of health and safety 
			 1 April 2008 1,238 
			 2009 1,323 
			 2010 1,342 
			 2011 1,316 
			 31 March 2012 1,302 
			 30 September 2013 1,215 
			 Notes: 1. The figures are for substantive full-time equivalents, rounded to the nearest whole number and provide a snapshot of the staff in post as at the dates shown. 2. The figures include regulatory and discipline specialist inspectors. 3. The Health and Safety Executive(HSE) frontline inspectors carry out a range of roles including inspection and accident investigation, but also other significant regulatory activities such as the assessment of major hazard site safety cases; asbestos licensing; working with dutyholders and stakeholders in targeted sectors to identify, develop and evaluate alternative intervention strategies etc.

Housing Benefit: Lancaster

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people are eligible under the disability living allowance to claim from the discretionary housing payment fund in the Lancaster District Council region.

Esther McVey: The Department does not hold data about the number of people in receipt of disability living allowance in the Lancaster district council region who are eligible to claim discretionary housing payments (DHP).
	This year, the Government has made available £180 million in discretionary housing payment funding. £25 million of this is aimed specifically at helping disabled people who live in significantly adapted accommodation.

Housing Benefit: Lancaster

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) households and (b) individuals have claimed from the discretionary housing payment fund in the Lancaster District Council region.

Esther McVey: The Department is collecting six-monthly returns detailing DHP awards in each local authority. This includes the number of awards granted, but not the number of households and individuals that have claimed from the DHP fund. We are currently gathering this information and performing the necessary quality assurance checks.
	This year, in addition to the original Government contribution, local authorities are able to bid for funding from a £20 million discretionary housing payment reserve fund. The scheme is open to bids until 3 February 2014.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many tenants affected by the under-occupancy penalty are subject to eviction;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the change in the number of empty properties in (a) South Shields and (b) the UK as a result of the implementation of the under-occupancy penalty;
	(3)  how many people have moved into emergency accommodation as a result of the implementation of the under-occupancy penalty; and what was the cost of such accommodation.

Kris Hopkins: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	The Government do not collect these statistics.
	An independent evaluation of the removal of the spare room subsidy has been commissioned and is expected to publish interim findings in spring 2014.
	I also refer the hon. Member to the recent Opposition Day debate motion, passed by the House, which observed:
	"notes the substantial structural deficit which was inherited from the previous Government and the need to get the nation's finances back into shape; further notes the need to bring expenditure on housing benefit under control; further notes that the proposed reversal of this policy would cost the Exchequer around half a billion pounds a year; regrets any exaggeration and misrepresentation of the effects of the policy; recognises the inequality of allowing social tenants to receive benefit for a spare bedroom whilst denying this opportunity to private tenants; supports the Government's action to deal with this unfairness whilst protecting vulnerable groups such as pensioners and providing substantial funding through Discretionary Housing Payments to local authorities to support other tenants who would otherwise be adversely affected; further notes the Government's continuing commitment to monitor the effects of the policy and the use of Discretionary Housing Payments; and welcomes the potential beneficial impact of this policy on those living in overcrowded accommodation and the 2.1 million families on waiting lists."

Jobcentre Plus

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average duration of incoming calls to Jobcentre Plus centres using 0845 numbers.

Esther McVey: The average duration of inbound calls to the Department's 0845 working age service lines between 1 November 2012 and 31 October 2013 was six minutes and 27 seconds.

Jobcentre Plus

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the number of calls made to Jobcentre Plus offices in (a) Birkenhead constituency and (b) the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral using an 0845 number in each year since 2003.

Esther McVey: Figures for specific locations cannot be provided in isolation. The Department does not record the geographic location of individual calls made to its centres and to do so would be a disproportionate cost.

Jobseekers Allowance

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average number of jobseeker's allowance claimants who were sanctioned per Jobcentre Plus adviser was in each region of the UK in each of the last 12 months.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

New Enterprise Allowance

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many businesses started under the National Enterprise Allowance scheme have since ceased trading.

Esther McVey: The Department does not track how many businesses that started under the new enterprise allowance scheme have since ceased trading. However, as an indication of sustainment, the Department has produced analysis showing that 78% of people who started drawing the new enterprise allowance remained off benefit continuously for 12 months.
	Source:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225167/NEA_benefit_status_ad-hoc_v3.pdf

New Enterprise Allowance

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) referrals, (b) clients engaged, (c) approved business plans and (d) business starts there have been under the National Enterprise Allowance scheme in (i) Sefton and (ii) the UK since the start of that scheme.

Esther McVey: The Department routinely publishes Official Statistics on the new enterprise allowance. These statistics show mentoring starts and allowance starts. NEA participants receive the weekly allowance after their business plan has been approved and their business begins trading. The Department does not publish information on referrals.
	Get Britain Working August 2013 official statistics
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/230333/RESTRICTED_GBW_Official_Statistics_Release_Aug_2013_final.pdf
	Geographical breakdowns of Get Britain Working official statistics
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/230306/gbw-geo-breakdown-_aug-13.xls
	Between April 2011 and May 2013 in the UK, 54,410 people have begun working with a business mentor as part of new enterprise allowance, and 26,160 people have gone on to receive the weekly allowance.
	Over this period, there have been 390 business mentor starts and 240 weekly allowance starts in Sefton.

Poverty: Children

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to his contribution of 18 November 2013, Official Report, column 955, what the evidential basis is for his statement that child poverty rose under the last Government.

Esther McVey: I am replying as the Minister responsible for this area.
	The topical oral question from the hon. Member for Hyndburn (Graham Jones), on 18 November 2013, Official Report, column 955, was asking about in-work poverty. The response by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), also relates to in-work poverty.
	While the number of children in families in relative poverty where at least one adult works was broadly flat between 1998-99 and 2009-10, this figure increased as a proportion of all children in relative poverty from 48% to 56%. In the year that the previous Government left office, the figure rose to 60%.
	Trends in relative low income are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey. The latest publication is available at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/households-below-average-income-hbai-199495-to-201112
	(ISBN 978-1-78153-531-8).
	Figures on children in relative poverty in families where at least one adult works can be found in Table 4.6ts (on page 125).

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade;
	(2)  what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade;
	(3)  what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Michael Penning: The Department regularly publishes information on the diversity of its work force under the public sector equality duty regulations introduced by the Equality Act 2010. The information requested is included in this publication; the latest information can be found at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/212104/equality-info-report-2013.pdf

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on what dates each Universal Credit pathfinder his Department planned to commence by April 2014 will begin.

Esther McVey: Our plans to rollout universal credit to an additional six jobcentres between October 2013 and spring 2014 are on track. Hammersmith jobcentre began to take claims for universal credit from 28 October 2013 and the Commencement Order is now in place for Rugby and Inverness to take claims from 25 November 2013. A further three jobcentres will begin to take claims to universal credit by spring 2014, as previously announced.

HEALTH

Alcoholic Drinks: Health Education

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to support Alcohol Awareness Week; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Department and Public Health England (PHE) support this week's Alcohol Awareness Week and Alcohol Concern's encouragement for wider discussion of the health risks and social issues associated with alcohol, including highlighting the importance of identification and brief advice in preventing and reducing risks from alcohol misuse.
	Change4Life resources are available from PHE, including alcohol information, digital tools and social media promotion to support Alcohol Awareness Week. PHE's Director of Alcohol and Drugs has made two major speeches during Alcohol Awareness Week in support of the PHE ambitions around reducing the harms of alcohol use. PHE Centres have been working with local partnerships to encourage their participation in local activity to support Alcohol Awareness Week.

Clinical Commissioning Groups

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many specialist commissioning hubs there are; and what the (a) budget, (b) number of staff employed and (c) budget for staff salaries is for each such hub.

Daniel Poulter: NHS England is responsible for directly commissioning specialised services, and has developed service specifications on a national basis, to ensure that patients can access the same high quality services regardless of where they live in England.
	There are 10 area teams in England that hold contracts with providers for specialised services and ensure that specifications are met. These are staffed by teams who are expert in contracting for specialised services.
	NHS England has provided detailed information about the budgets for the specialised commissioning teams, which sets out the associated staffing numbers and costs.
	A copy of the table has been placed in the Library.

Domestic Accidents: Older People

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into potential links between bladder and bowel problems and falls and fractures in the elderly.

Daniel Poulter: The Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds a wide range of research relating to bladder and bowel problems and relating to falls and fractures in the elderly.
	The NIHR has not commissioned any specific research into potential links between these two areas.

Drugs and Alcoholic Drinks: Homelessness

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had a recorded diagnosis of a drug or alcohol dependency and were statutorily homeless in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Jane Ellison: The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System records the numbers of people who are receiving treatment for drug and alcohol problems. It does not record statutory homelessness, but it does record the self-reported housing situation of people in alcohol and drug treatment. The housing situations for people newly presenting to alcohol and drug treatment in 20li-12 and 2012-13 are as follows:
	
		
			 Self-reported housing status among adult drug treatment clients newly presenting to treatment 
			 Primary drug 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 Housing situation Number Percentage Number Percentage 
			 Urgent problem 6,251 9 6,407 9 
			 Housing problem 10,078 15 9,995 15 
			 No problem 49,855 74 50,156 74 
			 Other 1,135 2 1,254 2 
			 Total 67,319 100 67,812 100 
			 Not stated/ missing data 2,115 — 1,435 — 
			 Total including missing data 69,434 — 69,247 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Self-reported housing status among adult alcohol treatment clients newly presenting to treatment 
			 Primary alcohol 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 Housing situation Number Percentage Number Percentage 
			 Urgent problem 2,753 4 2,901 4 
			 Housing problem 7,157 10 7,388 10 
			 No problem 58,289 85 61,636 85 
			 Other 550 1 443 1 
			 Total 68,749 100 72,368 100 
			 Not stated/ missing data 5,604 — 3,405 — 
			 Total including missing data 74,353 — 75,773 —

General Practitioners

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to encourage more people to apply to be trained as GPs.

Daniel Poulter: Health Education England (HEE) has been mandated to encourage more people to apply to be trained as general practitioners (GPs).
	The Government has asked HEE to:
	ensure progress should be made in each year of the mandate towards ensuring that 50% of medical students become GPs; and
	ensuring that 50% of specialty trainees choose to enter GP specialty training.
	HEE is supporting a GP taskforce which has been looking at the GP career pathway with a view to understanding what motivates trainees to become GPs; what barriers exist to that choice; what factors might boost interest and fill rates into GP training positions and looking at what more the system needs to do to achieve the target of increasing GP training numbers to 3,250 per year in England. The Taskforce report is currently being prepared, for publication.
	HEE actively promotes all health care careers, including medicine, through its careers services.

Hypothermia

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of hypothermia there have been (a) in total and (b) in each parliamentary constituency in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison: The information available has been placed in the Library.
	One possible factor in the increase in finished consultant episodes for hypothermia in 2013 is the longer than usual period of low temperatures of that year.

Incontinence

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve the training of doctors, nurses and healthcare assistants in continence care.

Daniel Poulter: The standard of training of doctors and nurses is the responsibility of the independent regulatory bodies. They are committed to ensuring high quality patient care delivered by health and health care professionals with the knowledge, skills and behaviours required to deal with the medical conditions they will encounter in practice.
	Health care assistants (HCAs) are not a regulated profession and their training is the responsibility of employers. Health Education England (HEE) has responsibility for promoting high quality education and training that is responsive to the changing needs of patients and local communities and will work with stakeholders to influence training curricula as appropriate. HEE has been tasked with establishing minimum training standards for HCAs by the spring of 2014.

Incontinence

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether NHS England is responsible for provision of guidance on continence care to clinical commissioning groups.

Norman Lamb: Responsibility for continence services sits with NHS England and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). CCGs are responsible for commissioning high quality continence service for their local populations and performance managing their providers in the delivery of high quality services. NHS England is responsible for ensuring this happens, and the Government holds it to account for this through the Mandate.
	The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has issued clinical guidelines on the management of urinary incontinence in women (2006) and faecal incontinence in adults (2007), which are supported by commissioning tools. NICE is also developing a quality standard on Faecal Incontinence for publication in February 2014. This guidance is there to support CCGs.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of a potential link between increased social distress and changes in the number of mental health referrals.

Norman Lamb: The Department has not made an assessment of a potential link between increased social distress and changes to the number of mental health referrals.

Mental Illness: Drugs and Alcoholic Drinks

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had a recorded diagnosis of both a mental health condition and drug or alcohol dependency in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Jane Ellison: The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) records the numbers of people who are receiving treatment for drug and alcohol problems. It does not record mental health diagnoses, but it does record numbers of people in drug treatment who are receiving care from mental health services for reasons other than substance misuse. These are known as dual diagnosis clients who are being treated for more serious mental health problems. These figures (as shown in the following tables) may not include people suffering from all types of depression and anxiety, therefore do not provide a comprehensive representation of all the people in alcohol and drug treatment who have mental health problems.
	Dual diagnosis is not a mandatory data item, and is not as well completed as the mandatory data items in NDTMS.
	
		
			 Table 1: Adult drug treatment clients also receiving care from mental health services 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 No dual diagnosis 149,298 147,638 
			 With dual diagnosis 29,911 32,059 
			 Missing data 17,901 13,878 
			 Total 197,110 193,575 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Adult alcohol treatment clients also receiving care from mental health services 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 No dual diagnosis 73,960 75,925 
			 With dual diagnosis 20,912 23,022 
			 Missing data 14,034 10,736 
			 Total 108,906 109,683

Midwives

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of midwives who are trained to offer expectant mothers mental health support.

Daniel Poulter: The current pre-registration curricular for midwifery training identifies how to support women with mental health support requirements.
	Health Education England is working with NHS England to ensure that sufficient midwives and other maternity staff are trained and available to provide every woman with personalised one-to-one care throughout pregnancy, childbirth and during the post natal period. This work will include recommendations on how women who have mental health support requirements or who have suffered a miscarriage, stillbirth or neonatal death of a baby may receive appropriate support from specialised trained midwives.

Monitor

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much Monitor spent on consultancy services (a) in 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14 to date.

Jane Ellison: The requested information is displayed in the following table:
	
		
			  Consultancy spend £000 
			 2010-11 1,168 
			 2011-12 4,630 
			 2012-13 12,533 
			 2013-14 (the first six months) 8,504 
		
	
	The key reason for growth in consultancy spend in 2011-12 was the development of Monitor's new functions, for example pricing. A large part of the increase in consultancy spend for 2012-13 onwards are the costs relating to the Contingency Planning Team and trust special administration work. The spend on this work is, however, offset by the benefits to the system of finding sustainable solutions for these organisations.

NHS: Translation Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the amount spent on translation services by (a) NHS trusts, (b) NHS foundation trusts and (c) clinical commissioning groups in each year since 2010.

Daniel Poulter: The Department has made no such estimate. National health service organisations have a duty to follow equalities legislation. This includes making sure their communities can understand information about NHS services and that patients and clinicians can communicate with each other. However, the Department would encourage NHS organisations to be efficient and save money where possible by working together and sharing resources.

Out-patients: Attendance

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost to the NHS of missed appointments.

Daniel Poulter: No estimates have been made centrally of the cost to the national health service of missed appointments (did not attends).

Psychiatry

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what his policy is on the commissioning by the NHS of psychotherapists who are not part of professional associations;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that psychotherapists in the UK comply with practitioner full disclosure.

Daniel Poulter: holding answer 21 November 2013
	The commissioning of psychotherapy services is a matter for clinical commissioning groups, supported by NHS England.

Roaccutane

Mike Thornton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research his Department has commissioned into the side effects of the Roaccutane form of isotretinoin.

Daniel Poulter: The Department has not commissioned any recent research specifically into the side effects suspected to be associated with isotretinoin.
	The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) continuously monitors the safety of all medicines on the market in the United Kingdom. The MHRA reviews regular updates of safety information for Roaccutane: these include all studies that have been published in the review period and all side effects suspected to be associated with isotretinoin that have been reported to the marketing authorisation holder or regulatory authorities worldwide. The latest review was completed in March 2013 and concluded that the overall balance of benefits and risks of isotretinoin in the treatment of severe forms of acne remains positive.

Translation Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department and its agencies spent on interpreters and translation services in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

Daniel Poulter: The Department's spend on interpreters and translation costs for calendar years 2010, 2011 and 2012 is contained in the following table:
	
		
			 Department of Health spend 
			 Category  Total (£ excluding VAT) 
			 Interpretation and translation 2010 39,284 
			  2011 3,653 
			  2012 5,831 
			 Interpretation and translation total  48,768 
			    
			 Grand total  48,768 
		
	
	Spend by the Department's agencies is only available from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in the timeframe requested and is contained in the following table. Public Health England did not exist during the time specified in the question (2010-11 to 2012-13).
	
		
			 Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency 
			 Category  Total (£ excluding VAT) 
			 Interpretation and translation 2010 27,485 
			  2011 31,863 
			  2012 30,219 
			 Interpretation and translation total  89,567 
			    
			 Grand total  89,567

Transplant Surgery

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) lung, (b) liver, (c) heart and (d) kidney transplants have been carried out by the National Health Service in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The information requested can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 Table: Lung, liver, heart and kidney transplants performed in the United Kingdom, 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2013, by year and transplant type. 
			 Transplant type 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Lung:           
			 Single lung 42 42 37 34 33 31 36 23 37 33 
			 Double lung 105 78 79 94 82 112 109 146 138 155 
			 Living Donor lung 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Liver:           
			 Liver 597 543 487 508 521 521 569 544 610 655 
			 Domino Liver(1) 3 0 1 4 4 7 3 4 5 2 
			 Liver lobe 72 81 93 112 99 123 94 119 111 118 
			 Living donor liver lobe 7 6 9 8 20 27 20 21 38 31 
			 Heart:           
			 Heart 164 154 138 155 127 129 120 131 138 142 
			 Domino Heart(2) 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 
			 Kidney:           
			 Kidney 1,330 1,217 1,204 1,257 1,249 1,403 1,481 1,502 1,599 1,750 
			 Living donor kidney 461 475 589 690 831 927 1,038 1,021 1,009 1,068 
			 Multi-organ transplants:           
			 Kidney/pancreas 47 79 107 164 188 151 159 155 173 166 
			 Heart/lung 9 15 7 6 7 3 5 3 5 3 
			 Kidney and heart 1 0 3 1 1 1 0 0 0 3 
			 Kidney and liver 10 12 12 18 13 13 15 9 18 11 
			 Liver and pancreas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 
			 Liver and lung 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Total 2,848 2,703 2,766 3,053 3,176 3,448 3,651 3,681 3,884 4,137 
			 (1) Domino liver: liver transplants may be performed when the liver being removed has a genetic defect in a single enzyme, but is otherwise normal. In some circumstances that liver can be transplanted into another recipient. This is known as domino liver transplantation and the liver donor will also need a transplant. (2 )Domino heart: transplants may occur where a patient receiving a heart and lung transplant donates their healthy heart to another recipient. Note: Kidney only transplants include circumstances where two kidneys are transplanted to the same recipient at the same time, but only one transplant procedure is courted. Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

Travel

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of travel within the UK was for his Department in each year since 2010; and how much of this was spent on (a) hire cars, (b) helicopter hire, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence.

Daniel Poulter: The total cost of United Kingdom travel and that relating to hire cars, hotel accommodation and subsistence for each financial year from 1 April, 2010 is given in the following table. No costs were incurred on helicopter hire.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Total UK travel Hire cars Hotel accommodation Subsistence 
			 2010-11 16,486,316.36 37,851.82 1,299,312 214,642.08 
			 2011-12 9,205,098.93 23,190.59 696,631 134,900.60 
			 2012-13 8,292,404.88 11,748.48 561,687 128,887.14 
			 Note: Costs are inclusive of value added tax.

Urinary System: Infectious Diseases

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions there were for urinary tract infections in 2012; and what the estimated cost to the NHS was of treating such admissions.

Daniel Poulter: There were 174,863 finished admission episodes(1) where the primary diagnosis(2 )was urinary tract infection(3) in 2011-12 and 184,943 in 2012-13.
	The cost of treating hospital admissions for urinary tract infections is not collected centrally. However estimates of NHS spend relating to problems of the genito-urinary system are available from the programme budgeting data and are set out in the following table.
	(1) A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period.
	(2) The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital.
	(3 )The following ICD-10 codes classify urinary tract infections.
	N39.0 Urinary tract infection site not specified.
	O23.4 Unspecified infection of urinary tract in pregnancy.
	O86.2 Urinary tract infection following delivery.
	P39.3 Neonatal urinary tract infection.
	A18.1 Tuberculosis of genitourinary system.
	This code includes, but is not limited to tuberculosis of the urinary tract.
	Expenditure data on the cost of hospital admissions for urinary tract infections is not available centrally at this level of detail. Although, estimates of NHS spend relating to ‘Problems of the genito urinary system’ are available from the programme budgeting data. The programme budgeting data collection requires primary care trusts (PCTs) to analyse their expenditure by specific healthcare conditions.
	The following table includes estimated aggregate PCT level expenditure on Problems of the genito urinary system for financial year 2011-12:
	
		
			   PCT aggregate expenditure (£ million) 2011-12 
			 17 Problems of the genito urinary system 4,621.35 
			 17a Genital tract problems 1,149.60 
			 17b Renal problems 1,424.12 
			 17c Sexually transmitted infections 250.16 
			 17x Problems of genito urinary system (Other) 1,797.47 
		
	
	The following table provides estimated aggregate PCT level expenditure on Problems of the genito urinary system by care setting for 2011-12:
	
		
			   Aggregate expenditure (£million) 
			    Primary care Secondary care 
			  Programme budgeting category Prevention and health promotion Primary care Primary prescribing In-patient: Elective and daycase In-patient: Non-elective Out-patient Other secondary care Total secondary Care 
			 17 Problems of the genitor urinary system 110.2 3.1 524.5 851.8 889.2 887.0 806.0 3,434.1 
			 17a Genital tract problems 0.7 1.0 120.9 420.6 106.5 385.4 29.2 941.7 
			 17b Renal problems 0.1 0.1 50.4 188.0 276.9 122.0 707.9 1,294.9 
			 17c Sexually transmitted infections 99.9 1.2 0.8 2.4 3.1 57.3 24.3 87.1 
			 17x Problems of genito urinary system (Other) 9.5 0.8 352.4 240.9 502.8 322.4 44.5 1,110.5 
		
	
	
		
			   Aggregate expenditure (£million) 
			   Urgent/emergency care     
			  Programme budgeting category Ambulance A&E Community care Care provided in other setting Non-health/social care Total expenditure 
			 17 Problems of the genitor urinary system 5.6 56.5 298.9 32.8 155.8 4,621.3 
			 17a Genital tract problems 0.4 — 41.6 5.2 38.3 1,149.6 
			 17b Renal problems 4.5 — 17.4 7.2 49.5 1,424.1 
			 17c Sexually transmitted infections 0.0 — 45.5 4.6 11.1 250.2 
			 17x Problems of genitor urinary system (Other) 0.7 56.5 194.4 15.8 57.0 1,797.5 
			 Notes: 1. Expenditure data are calculated from PCT programme budgeting returns. Programme budgeting returns are based on a subset of PCT accounts data and represent a subset of overall NHS expenditure data. 2. Calculating programme budgeting data is complex and not all healthcare activity or services can be classified directly to a programme budgeting category or care setting. When it is not possible to reasonably estimate a programme budgeting category, expenditure is classified as ‘Other’. Expenditure on General Medical Services and Personal Medical Services cannot be reasonably estimated at disease specific level, and is separately identified as a subcategory of ‘Other’ expenditure. 3. The allocation of expenditure to programme budgeting subcategories is not always straightforward, and subcategory level data should therefore be used with caution. 4. In order to improve data quality, continual refinements have been made to the programme budgeting data calculation methodology since the first collection in 2003-04.The underlying data which support programme budgeting data are also subject to yearly changes. Programme budgeting data can not be used to analyse changes in investment in specific service areas between years. Users of the data should note that significant changes to the data calculation methodology were introduced in 2010-11. 5. Figures for years 2003-04 to 2009-10 are calculated using provider costs as a basis. Figures for 2010-11 and 2011-21 are calculated using price paid for specific activities and services purchased from healthcare providers. PCTs follow standard guidance, procedures and mappings when calculating programme budgeting data. 6. Aggregate PCT data supersede previously published England level programme budgeting data. England level data incorporated estimates of expenditure on healthcare conditions for the Department of Health, Strategic Health Authorities and Special Health Authorities. The Department of Health no longer publishes this data as aggregate PCT figures provide a more accurate and meaningful representation of the breakdown of NHS expenditure by healthcare condition. 7. The analysis of programme budgeting data by care setting was introduced for the first time in 2010-11. For this reason, programme budgeting data within individual care settings should be interpreted with caution. 8. Due to differences in the level of information available to PCTs on accident and emergency (A&E) attendances a national split has been applied to PCT total A&E expenditure to apportion it across programme budgeting categories.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Broadband

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will place in the Library a list showing when BT Broadband will be rolled out within a 20-mile radius of (a) Exeter, (b) Oxford and (c) Stoke-on-Trent.

Edward Vaizey: BT Openreach publishes its forthcoming superfast broadband delivery plans on its website at:
	http://www.superfast-openreach.co.uk/where-and-when/
	Devon, Oxfordshire and Staffordshire county councils have published their own maps showing outline plans for delivery of their rural broadband projects on their respective project websites:
	http://www.connectingdevonandsomerset.co.uk/where-and-when/
	http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/content/broadband-coverage-map
	http://www.superfaststaffordshire.co.uk/where-and-when/where-and-when/

Television: Advertising

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will estimate the number of television advertisements watched by children in each of the last 30 years.

Edward Vaizey: In July last year Ofcom published its ninth annual Communications Market report which outlines data about the television viewing habits of children and adults. The British Broadcasters Audience Research Board (BARB) provides the official viewing figures for UK Television audiences. The following table contains the information it has available in relation to children's viewing of advertisements.
	
		
			 Children aged 4-15 
			  Average number of ads seen per week 
			 2007 201 
			 2008 216 
			 2009 217 
			 2010 223 
			 2011 227 
			 Source: BARB 
		
	
	The following calculations have been derived by dividing the total child impacts figures by the total child universe, then divided by 52 to give approx. per week figs.

TREASURY

Average Earnings

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the extent to which the rate of increase of average earnings has kept up with the rate of consumer price inflation; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: holding answer 18 November 2013
	The country has been through an unprecedented economic crisis and the only sustainable way to raise living standards is to stick to the Government's economic plan and deliver a recovery that works for all. Britain is back on the path to prosperity; the economy is growing, the deficit is falling and jobs are being created.
	However, the Government appreciates that times are tough for families, and has taken continued action to help with the cost of living by increasing the personal allowance, freezing fuel duty and helping local authorities to freeze council tax.
	Household disposable income has been higher over the last year than in the previous Government's last year in office and indeed higher than any year under the previous Government.

Children: Day Care

Lucy Powell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 147W, on children: day care, if he will publish a list of all stakeholders consulted as part of his Department's consultation on tax-free childcare;
	(2)  how many (a) businesses, (b) parents and (c) other groups or organisations responded to his Department's consultation on tax-free childcare; what proportion of such respondents supported a tax-free childcare scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: holding answer 23 October 2013
	HM Treasury and HMRC contacted a wide range of organisations during the consultation on Tax-Free Childcare. Responses to the consultation will be published in the usual way and made available in the Libraries of the House.
	As part of the consultation on Tax-Free Childcare the Government has to date, received formal responses from 21 businesses, 54 parents and 61 other organisations. As well as the formal consultation, the Government also launched online surveys for parents, employers and child care providers. The Government received 35,643 responses to the parent survey, 684 responses to the child care provider survey and 211 responses to the employer survey.
	The Government is currently considering these submissions and will respond in due course.

Excise Duties: Beer

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of the reduction in beer duty announced in the March 2013 Budget passed on to customers; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: An estimate of the proportion of the reduction in beer duty passed on to final consumers could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.

Infrastructure

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many infrastructure projects in (a) Scotland and (b) Wales have been awarded a UK guarantee to date.

David Gauke: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement of 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 9WS, from the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the right hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander).
	A full list of projects and status can be found on the gov.uk website.

Office for Budget Responsibility

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received on reform of the Office for Budget Responsibility; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: The Chancellor regularly receives representations on a wide range of matters, including on the role of the independent Office for Budget Responsibility.

Smuggling: Fuels

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the amount of revenue foregone as a result of illegal fuel being transported over the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

Nicky Morgan: No assessment has been made of the loss of revenue as a result of illegal fuel being transported over the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. However, tax gap figures published in the document at the following link give estimates of revenue lost to illicit fuel on the GB mainland, and the non-UK duty paid market share in Northern Ireland, which includes both legitimate cross border shopping and illicit fuel.
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/tax-gaps/mtg-2013.pdf
	HMRC fights fraud on a wide range of fronts, from special units performing thousands of roadside checks to raiding laundering plants. HMRC have also recently concluded the evaluation of a possible new marker for rebated fuel, which will make it harder to launder marked fuel and sell it at a profit.

Taxation: Agriculture

Therese Coffey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration has been given by HM Revenue and Customs to the tax status of agricultural land used for energy projects, including solar farms; and what guidance has been issued.

David Gauke: There are no specific reliefs for agricultural land used for energy projects but relief may be available in a number of ways.
	Capital gains tax roll-over relief may be available where a person carrying on a trade disposes of land occupied and used for the purposes of the trade (such as energy generation) and the proceeds of the disposal are applied in acquiring new assets for use in the trade. Relief is not available where the trade is carried on by another person.
	Inheritance tax agricultural property relief (APR) is available for land used for agricultural purposes although if the land is primarily used for energy projects and not for the cultivation of food then relief will generally not be available.
	Alternatively, business property relief (BPR) may be due if the land is used in a trading business whose main activity was energy generation providing the land was not let out and the conditions for the relief were met. Guidance on what qualifies for APR and BPR and the conditions to be met to qualify for the relief is available on the HMRC website.

EDUCATION

Kings Science Academy

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  if he will publish the police crime reference number obtained by his Department on reporting the findings of the investigation into Kings Science Academy, Bradford to Action Fraud in April 2013;
	(2)  if he will publish recordings of all telephone conversations between his Department and Action Fraud in relation to the investigation into Kings Science Academy, Bradford;
	(3)  if he will publish the Improvement Notice issued by his Department to the Kings Science Academy, Bradford.

Edward Timpson: The crime reference number given to the Department by Action Fraud is NFRC130400222669.
	The Department does not hold recordings of telephone conversations with Action Fraud, regarding Kings Science Academy.
	The warning notice issued to Kings Science Academy was published on the Department’s website on 20 November:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/aboutdfe/executiveagencies/efa/efafundingfinance/b00212647/external-assurance/academiesfraud/investigation-reports

Kings Science Academy

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what information his Department provided to Action Fraud regarding fraud at Kings Science Academy in Bradford;
	(2)  what information his Department provided to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau regarding fraud at Kings Science Academy in Bradford;
	(3)  pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2013, Official Report, column 339W, on Kings Science Academy, for what reasons his Department did not provide the Internal Audit Unit's full unredacted report into Kings Science Academy when Action Fraud reported that there was not enough information to progress the case further;
	(4)  what information was provided to Action Fraud by his Department when his Department first reported fraudulent activity at the Kings Science Academy, Bradford.

Edward Timpson: Evidence of possible fraud was reported to Action Fraud in April and a follow-up inquiry was made in September. Only the National Fraud Investigation Bureau (NFIB) can make a decision on whether or not to investigate. The Department supplied Action Fraud with all the critical information in the Education Funding Agency’s investigation report and all the information they requested.
	All contact relating to the case was with Action Fraud, which is the UK’s national fraud reporting centre.
	Action Fraud notified the Department on 1 November by telephone that the information provided had been wrongly classified as an information report rather than a crime report. This error has been rectified by Action Fraud and West Yorkshire police have confirmed they are now investigating. The Department is co-operating fully with their inquiries and has provided the West Yorkshire police with an unredacted copy of the investigation report, at their request. Action Fraud has apologised to the Department for this error.